Financial Services >> CEO Interviews >> September 20, 2001
JOHN R. COCHRAN started his banking career as a part-time Teller in 1966
with Hawkeye State Bank in Iowa City, Iowa. In 1967 he joined Norwest
Bancorporation (now Norwest Corporation) as a Management Trainee with
5th Northwestern National Bank in Minneapolis. In 1976, he was named
president and Chief Executive Officer of 5th Northwestern Bank in
Minneapolis. In 1979 he was promoted to President and Chief Executive
Officer of Norwest Bank Rochester (Minnesota), and in 1982 to President
and Chief Executive Officer of Norwest Bank Omaha. In 1984 he was named
Regional President of Norwest Corporation, and in 1986, he was appointed
president and chief executive Officer of Norwest Bank Nebraska. Mr.
Cochran was appointed President and Chief Executive Officer of
FirstMerit Corporation on March 1, 1995 and was named Chairman and Chief
Executive Officer of FirstMerit Corporation on February 1, 1998. He was
born February 6, 1943, in Council Bluffs, Iowa, earned his Bachelor's
degree in Finance and Economics from the University of Iowa and
completed the Stonier Graduate School of Banking at Rutgers
University.In January, 1999 Mr. Cochran was elected as a Director of the
Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland. Mr. Cochran serves as a Trustee of
Akron Tomorrow, Board Member and Executive Committee Member of Great
Trail Council, Boy Scouts of America, Board Member of the Ohio Bankers
Association, Vice President and Trustee of the Akron Art Museum and Ohio
Foundation of Independent Colleges, Inc. He was a Division Chairman for
the 1998 United Way Campaign and currently serves as a member of the
Cleveland Presidents Organization. Profile
the history?
Mr. Cochran: The holding company was formed in 1982 from a merger
between the First National Bank of Akron
